


who says heroes can't cry

by lovesickdays



Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: BAMF Sawada Tsunayoshi, Class 1-A Needs a Hug (My Hero Academia), Class 1-A Shenanigans (My Hero Academia), Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Lambo causing havoc again, Parallel Universes, Protective Sawada Tsunayoshi, Slice of Life, Teacher Sawada Tsunayoshi, Vongola Decimo Sawada Tsunayoshi, they are just kids
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-04
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 05:13:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25707982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovesickdays/pseuds/lovesickdays
Summary: Sawada Tsunayoshi was a firm believer that kids should be kids. Having his childhood plagued with the legacy of a blood-laced crime organisation was enough. However, as he arrived in a parallel universe, he realised that as opposed to having just one insignificant kid suffering through trials and tribulations meant for those much older. There was a school dedicated just for that purpose.Although he knew he couldn't change how an entire society operated for decades. What Tsuna decided to do was to be a comforting and nurturing presence in these students' life, hoping they wouldn't have the same nightmares he experienced even till now. Nor would their bodies be littered with scars where they most certainly don't belong.It's just a roundabout way of saying Tsuna is there to give everyone a big hug and tell them sometimes 'Plus Ultra' isn't the solution.
Comments: 67
Kudos: 627





	1. Prologue

**TSUNA**

Perhaps in another parallel life, Sawada Tsunayoshi would have felt more obliged to be surprised by the turn of events as the smoke surrounding him dispersed after he batted it with his fingers. Lambo’s bazooka always had the most unfortunate aim and timing as it would seem. The man dusted off his waistcoat with an annoyed huff of breath. He really needed to be sterner about the ground rules within the mansion, especially when it came to the usage of weapons inside confined spaces. Still, it was a matter of waiting it out. Regardless, he set up a timer for five minutes just in case.

Yet, as his eyes began to wander around the bedroom, Tsuna came to the unfortunate realisation that this wasn’t quite the same bedroom in which he had grown up in. The newfound information itself made the Don feel uncomfortable as he began to walk to the window attached to the bedroom.

The high-rise building, brightly lit billboard and tightly packed traffic were enough to confirm Tsuna’s suspicion. He most certainly wasn’t in Italy anymore. He was in Japan, but this didn’t feel like Namimori. The buildings were too tall, the nights were too bright, and he was for sure not at the house he grew up in.

His next immediate reaction was to make his way around the room he was in. Tsuna had been trained for similar situations; be it preparation for the next time an unfortunate incident like this happened, or more frequently, the kidnapping sorts. Though, it had been several years since he had wound up in a severe mishap at the mercy of the bazooka. His first order as soon as he returned was to remove the weapon from the possession of Lambo and Giannini until the pair understood that upgrades to the weapon were to be done under careful lab conditions. Not just to be used randomly throughout the mansion as they see fit.

Once he had made good on his examination of the items scattered over the table, Tsuna carefully picked up a folder that had a huge logo with the English letter ‘A’ in the middle. It seemed important enough as he brought it closer for inspection.

Flipping it open, immediately he saw a photo of himself. Some basic information that matched his own, especially the photo, which was near identical; though Tsuna imagined this would’ve been a more accurate representation of who he was if Reborn never appeared in his life. The man continued to the next page, flipping through what he could only imagine was a version of a manual. It took him a few pages of idly browsing before realising it was a code of conduct.

“Ah,” he mused when he finally landed on a class list.

‘Class 1-A’. ‘

‘Aoyama Yuga’ appeared to be a charming boy with notable long lashes and overall a softer look. From what the book had recorded, it would seem that he scored reasonably average in terms of written exam, which made him wonder how he came to be in what seemed like a fairly elite class. The term of choice was the ‘Hero Course’, which he figured was just an elitist term for the smarter students. How he hated that. Then, he noticed the practical examination score came up. ‘Villain points’ and ‘rescue points’ were the two sections which Aoyama got 32 and 10 respectively. This was all a lot to take in.

Next student, ‘Ashido Mina’ who…

Tsuna’s eyes widened as he stared at the girl in the photo. The pink aesthetic with curly horns coming out of her hair gave the illusion that they were actually her horns. Not to mention the colour of her eyes. Everything about her was different; new. This was when he decided to flip through the list, trying to find a common thread to balance his feeling of discomfort. The Hyper Intuition continued to scream at him, reaffirming his suspicion that there was something uniquely different about the rules of this world then finally, he got it.

‘Quirk’. The word had been used liberally throughout the whole entire book. Still, he had ignored it, choosing to focus on the more apparent aspects of the manual. He decided to flip back to his own page, checking what followed the term, yet it was left empty. Odd. He then flipped to the students’ and theirs were far more interesting. ‘Navel Laser’, ‘Acid’, ‘Frog’, ‘Engine’, ‘Zero Gravity’… The list went on and on. The names were each as eccentric as the next; some of which were obvious, others required further explanation.

It was then the alarm rang.

Tsuna really was going to ground Lambo when he returned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Although there is a cohesive storyline, this will function more like a drabble and it will take place just as 1-A starts their eventful (traumatic) school year. I am all caught up with the manga, but I don't think I will get that far. So anime-watchers can definitely read this without being spoiled. 
> 
> Thank you.


	2. Chapter 1

**IZUKU**

To say everything about his high school life felt like a fever dream was a grave understatement. Midoriya Izuku felt like he was walking on Cloud Nine since the very first day as he stumbled into the school of his wildest dreams. Reality has yet to set in, but he was tentatively aware of the life he henceforth agreed to live. This was going to be a new chapter in his life. Hopefully, a much brighter one now that he had a Quirk under his belt. Though, he wouldn’t say that was the defining reason for his optimistic outlook.

No, it was the fact All-Might of all people trusted him enough to pass on the hat to him. Generations of revered Heroes before him have carried the same mantle, so he too must make them proud; make it worthwhile.

Yet, as Izuku stumbled into his homeroom, a wave of nausea hit him.

It was perhaps naïve for him to think that with only two classes, they wouldn’t be assigned to the same class.

The blonde was involved in a rather heated argument with the strait-laced boy from the entrance exam, both of whom he wished weren’t in the same class as he was. Izuku had promised himself that he would do his best to become the greatest Hero since All-Might, but how could he do that when he was too busy cowering at the sight of his own classmates. He should let the past be bygones and start a new chapter. Everyone was here to be a Hero, after all.

Thump.

Izuku felt the entirety of his body seize up at the banging when Bakugou eventually stormed away from the argument. As their eyes met for a fraction of a second, the boy knew that there was more misery waiting for him where that came from. He nervously stepped aside to avoid Bakugou’s anger, barely noticing another presence in front of him.

“I am terribly sorry for the way I behaved at the entrance exam!” The voice practically jolted Izuku out of his skin as his eyes landed on the other person participating in the previous kerfuffle. “My name is Iida Tenya, it is a pleasure to meet you. I am so very impressed by the way you handled the exam! You must’ve known there was a hidden scoring system. I, for one, had no clue.”

There was something almost cartoony about the way his hands moved with every word. Surprisingly though, he seemed a lot less intense than before, perhaps it was because Tenya was no longer screaming at him. That must be it.

“No, it’s okay, it’s a pleasure to meet you too. My name is Midoriya Izuku,” he mumbled out in a single breath, the corner of his lips twitching into a nervous smile. The boy wanted to explain himself better, but just in time, the door was whipped open to an excited, but very much familiar face. Suddenly, Izuku was acutely aware of how heated his cheeks were. She was the girl from the entrance exam!

“It’s you! I’m so glad you are here! Your punch was awesome,” she beamed at Izuku, hands imitating his last punch which only made the said boy more embarrassed. He had no choice but to cover his face with his arms, head turned to the side as the girl continued. “I wonder if today is just orientation! Oh, and who is our teacher, I hope it’s someone cool!”

Her excitement was both infectious, but the words embarrassing. Izuku desperately tried to bring the topic of conversation away from himself and the embarrassing stories from his entrance exam.

“Are you guys done?”

The voice startled the pair. Izuku looked over Uraraka’s shoulder, only to see a man all wrapped up in an orange sleeping bag on the floor; bloodshot eyes just staring at them rather lifelessly. It wasn’t as either of them could get a word in before the man suddenly unzipped the sleeping bag to slurp some energy drinks. Then almost too suddenly made his way inside the classroom, moving past them, heading to the front of the room.

“Hi. I’m your homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shota,”

“Huh!”

“Your other homeroom teacher, Sawada Tsunayoshi, is on his way,” Aizawa said as he made his way to behind the desk at the front.

* * *

**TSUNA**

It shouldn’t have surprised Tsuna that he would get lost in a place on the very first day. Some things never changed, even with age and experience. Though, it certainly wasn’t the only reason he missed the entirety of roll call. U.A.’s security measure was unlike anything else he had experienced back home. Beyond signing a few more documents regarding induction on top of the ones he had signed when he was first hired, Tsuna was also brought to get his photo taken, and an ID card was made. Without it, he couldn’t get very far on campus. Something he noticed when he had turned the wrong corner and stumbled upon the main student building. Thinking it was a shortcut, he tried to get in but was locked out due to his lack of identification. 

A school for Heroes-in-training truly did live up to its name. Yet, it did raise the question, why was all of these security measures necessary? The question was shower thoughts for another day as he finally arrived at the oval, finding a group of familiar faces lined up neatly with an older man at the front. 

Shaggy hair, unkempt outfit and the bandages which had become an identifier of the Hero, Eraserhead; otherwise known as Aizawa Shota.

The fact that Tsuna had so calmly retrieved these facts from his brain was unsettling. The adaptability of humans should most certainly never be questioned; at the same time, he did come from a world where the ‘Dying Will Flame’ was very much a real concept. Being Heroes with supernatural abilities were hardly beyond comprehension. Not to mention, if the books were correct, it was a part of natural evolution. 

Speaking of which, he would have never thought holing up in the library would be his coping mechanism of choice. 

_“Stop your whining, Dame-Tsuna. When you are in enemy territory with no back-up, knowledge is power. The more you know, the less can throw you off your guard.”_

_“It still doesn’t explain why I have to recite the Encyclopedia in Italian!”_

Funnily enough, Tsuna’s subsequent obscure knowledge about Wolfsbane did end up pulling Sasagawa from the brink of death during that one mission. 

The wave of homesickness washed over, leaving him feeling a little helpless as he stared at his students. Reborn would surely laugh at the prospect of him becoming a teacher, especially after the pitiful excuse of a school life he had. Tsuna wondered if himself from this world had also suffered through the same experiences as he did. Was this the reason why he chose to be a teacher? Be a teacher that didn’t blatantly ignore their students’ well-being for the sake of convenience or reputation? Be a teacher who could’ve helped him in the past? Perhaps. But Tsuna might have been forcing his own narrative into this world. Mukuro did always say he was too soft-hearted for a Mafia don. 

“Midoriya Izuku.” 

The voice jolted Tsuna from his thoughts as he gazed to the kids again. This time, he focused on the boy with a head of green locks. He distinctively remembered the student from the entrance exam highlights he received. This was the one who had broken all of his limbs for the sake of rescuing someone. 

The tactless courage and lack of self-preservation was this world’s definition of a great Hero. Or, at the very least, it was how one of the top Hero schools in Japan had defined the term. It didn’t need to be written out. The mere fact that Midoriya Izuku, who would’ve died if not for that girl’s quick thinking, had received the highest amount of rescue points out of his peers made it loud and clear. 

It was hard for Tsuna to describe just how much he hated that mindset. 

The man finally made his way to the group just as Midoriya stepped up to throw the ball. Tsuna could feel the boy’s nervous energy from here, which was reminiscent of his younger self. The same timid, jittery nature; leftover from years of mistreatment and bullying, he was sure. His Hyper Intuition insisted. 

Tsuna placed his hand on Izuku’s shoulder once he passed the students quietly, stopping him from attempting to use that Quirk of his. 

“Whatever you were thinking of doing, do it another way. You can’t save anyone if you can’t get up,” he reminded the student before taking a small step back. Midoriya seemed like a baby bird, still learning how to use his wings, especially compared to some of his peers who had a better grip on the usage of their Quirk. It was almost as if he had only recently discovered it. 

From the corner of Tsuna’s gaze, he noticed Aizawa moving back to a neutral stance which made his lips curl up in a small smile. At least this man had the common sense to stop his students from preventable injuries. 

“I… What do you mean?” came Midoriya’s nervous murmur, the green eyes focusing on the spot just below Tsuna’s eyes which showed just how uncomfortable he was to be in the limelight.

“Were you not going to use the same Quirk you used during the entrance exam?” There was something so inherently familiar about the way he was lecturing this boy. It could be how the recklessness reminded him of the way Gokudera used to be, which made it easier for Tsuna to assert himself in an unfamiliar situation. “Pushing yourself to the point of risking death is not necessary for every situation. Midoriya Izuku, do what you can within your capabilities. There is no shame in putting your health first, especially in a school setting. You are here to learn and grow. This is just a test meant to give us a guide of how best to push you in the future.”

“But Aizawa-sensei said that the last place will face expulsion,” the boy had replied weakly. 

“A victory that lands you unfit to protect and save those in need seems like a shallow victory, don’t you think? Sometimes, it’s better to retreat in order to succeed.” He turned his body to face the rest of the students, a warm smile decorating his face. “My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi, I am the other homeroom teacher and also your Social Studies teacher. I hope my students will come to understand that being a Hero doesn’t always equate to charging at the problem with everything you’ve got. I will do my best to reinforce that idea. Thank you.”

Tsuna returned his gaze to Midoriya with a curt nod, “I hope you take something away from what I said. You may continue with what you were doing,” he said as he stepped back, so he was next to Aizawa. 

Midoriya appeared hesitant as he looked down at his hand then back up at the field ahead of him. Seconds passed with little happening, but Tsuna could tell the boy finally saw the bigger picture. It was a few more seconds later before Midoriya lifted his right hand up from behind his ear as he leaned back. Tsuna saw the power building up in his student’s index finger just as the ball left his hand. 

705.3 meter at the expense of one finger. Tsuna definitely considered this to be a win.

The man grinned as he walked over to ruffle Midoriya’s hair, “Good job! Someday, I am sure you can do all of this without hurting yourself in the process. But until then, take it one step at a time,” he trailed off, eyeing the throbbing finger. “For now? Go and get yourself patched up.”

Tsuna watched as Midoriya walked off before turning his attention to Aizawa. He was all of the sudden reminded of how he acted as he quickly bowed his head. Despite his introduction, Aizawa had seniority and was definitely the one who was in charge, “Sorry for running late, Aizawa-sensei. I got lost! Won’t happen again.” He was terrible at grovelling, but he hoped he came across as apologetic. Tsuna really didn’t want to receive a lecture later.

To his surprise though, Aizawa didn’t say much as he walked to the front of the class who had fallen into idle chatter, seemingly discussing the results. 

“I was just joking about the expulsion thing,” the Pro-Hero said while flipping through the notebook. “You guys all did great. Now get changed and go back to class.”

There was a collective sigh of relief before everyone bowed as they scattered off. 

‘All things considered,’ Tsuna thought as he looked over at the kids running off, chatting and laughing, ‘this might not be the worst place to be.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all of the support given to me! I am very honoured to have you lovelies supporting this fic. I hope you will continue to support me on the rest of my journey with this particular idea. 
> 
> As of now, I am unsure as to how often I will upload, but I will be sure to try and find a schedule that is consistent.
> 
> Thank you.


	3. Chapter 2

**TSUNA**

“Yeah, they destroyed the entire building. It took forever to restore the set,” Kayama laughed, eyes turning to the door when it opened. “Sawada-sensei! Did you hear about what your kids did yesterday? Especially Midoriya and Bakugou. My god, the pair destroyed a whole entire building during the mock battle.”

Perhaps, there was a reason to be amused about an entire building collapsing on students that he wasn’t getting. Still, Tsuna just offered a curt smile as he bowed his head. “Good morning, Midnight-sensei. No, I am afraid I have not. By the time the Hero class started, I was already heading home. But please do tell me more about it. I would ask Aizawa-sensei, but he is nowhere to be found, the same goes for All-Might.” 

It had been difficult trying to adjust to the schedule of being a teacher on top of finding a way home. Ideally, Tsuna would’ve liked to have found a way to return back to his world, however, as it would come to be, parallel universes were merely a theory in this timeline. He had tried to search for Spanner, Shoichi and Giannini, but from his research, they were living completely different lives than the one they had back home. Spanner was just an average mechanic; Shoichi was a regular white-collar working a nine-to-five and Giannini, despite being an inventor still, seemed to have ventured into the realm of green energy. 

“… then from what I heard, Midoriya punched the ceiling as opposed to Bakugou. That Bakugou kid has got real awful manners!” Yamada’s booming voice was hard to ignore as it jolted Tsuna from his memory, eyes flicking over with a quick nod. 

“Sounds like those two are not on the best terms,” he had answered quietly as a passing thought before standing up, with his files. “Sorry to interrupt your story, but I have to go to class. I will see you later.”

It was abrupt, but Tsuna truly had a lot on his mind. It had only been a week or so since his accidental arrival, which was not enough time for him to submit to his fate and simply get on with his life here. Juggling between keeping up appearances and desperately searching for a way out, he was starting to crack. There was no one to confide in, and no one who could possibly help him. He was now relying on those back home to seek him, but it was the same helplessness that was driving him to the brinks of despair. Tsuna hated being a burden to those around him and what can be more burdensome than sitting around waiting to be rescued? 

He promptly arrived at the classroom, hand resting against the door as he took in a deep breath, just as the bell rang. Tsuna had pictured his confusion and the jumbled-up thoughts into a small sphere before putting it away in the back of his mind. Treating this as a mission was the only way to stop himself from projecting all of his real thoughts publicly.

“Good morning, class, I hope you are all feeling well,” he said with a bright smile before placing the stack of files down as Tsuna did a once-over to see if all of the seats have been filled. More than that, he was also checking to see if everyone was all healed and well-rested. 

“Stand up,” he had heard Iida say before all of the class followed to after to bow their heads in greeting. 

Tsuna waited for everyone to settle again before opening to the first page. Roll call, admin, relaying any information needed, it was all tedious but necessary. Once that was done, he decided to relax a little as he picked up the chalk so he could write his name on the board.

“I realised as I was preparing for my class last night that I have technically never introduced myself formally since I did miss roll call on the very first day. My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi, I teach Social Studies, and I am also the other homeroom teacher for the year. Since Social Studies is your first class, I will use the remainder of the roll call to answer any questions you might have.” 

Immediately, a few hands flew up. Tsuna wasn’t surprised by the curiosity considering the exclusivity of those who were hired by U.A.. Especially for the Hero Course. Every one of those teachers was either Pro-Heroes or had considerable achievements in their fields to earn themselves a spot. The question had more than once appeared in his own thoughts while he was researching the history and operation of U.A.. 

Being a diversity hire was the only probable answer. 

Tsuna decided to gesture at the first hand that shot up. Kaminari Denki. He can’t quite remember him from the entrance exam videos, but he did remember the boy’s Quirk was ‘Electrification’. It resembled what Lambo was capable of. 

“Score! Nice, first.” Kaminari grinned before leaning in a little. “We are curious about who you are. A few of us tried to search you up after orientation, but we couldn’t find anything!” 

“Isn’t it normal not to find anything on a civilian?” Tsuna replied with a faint smile, purposely not answering the question directly. Even within the faculty, a lot of them were curious about who he was since he had virtually no digital presence. No known social media, no digital footprint, as if he had been wiped. Tsuna will admit, he was suspicious too, since to his knowledge, unless someone was purposely trying to disappear, they should have left some traces of their existence on the internet. Even if it worked in his favour and allowed him to shape his story, however, he liked it. 

“Ehhh! You are a civilian, sensei?” the blonde’s animated response was echoed by a few others in the class; the redhead on the nearby table leaned closer to gossip. 

“I put all of my accounts to private a little before I started to apply for jobs. I didn’t really want people to see the irresponsible things I did as a young student,” he accompanied the vague explanation with a soft chuckle, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. 

It was the same lie he had used around the office. Tsuna knew it was hard to dispute with that logic, nor should there be any reason to dig further when everyone understood the importance of keeping a clean history when job seeking. 

Mina took the chance to throw her hand up, bouncing with excitement. She couldn’t deny how handsome the teacher was, so obviously, there was a question she desperately needed to be answered. “Sensei, how old are you? Are you single?” Okay, two questions. 

“I am twenty-six this year, and as for my relationship status, well, it’s complicated.” There was no lie there. It really was hard to explain. Tsuna had to consider the implication of getting intimate with someone because of his ongoing status as the most wanted man in the Mafia. Every decision had its consequences, and the thought of dragging someone he loved into danger filled him with immense guilt. He had ended enough relationships under the same excuse to know that it would take him a long time to get comfortable with dating. 

“Complicated!” Hagakure chimed in with a pouty tone. “You can’t leave us hanging!”

“Exactly! I agree! Tell us, sensei!” Sero added just to join the fun. 

Iida almost immediately jumped up. “Everyone, be quiet! Respect sensei’s privacy! We are all here to learn, not to gossip!” Once again, the stiff tone made Tsuna smile a little. This boy really felt like an old man living in a boy’s body. 

“It’s okay, Iida-kun, I don’t mind. But I am afraid I have nothing more to offer in terms of relationship gossip.” The man shrugged his shoulder before glancing over at the time. “One last question, Midoriya-kun, go.”

“Sawada-sensei, what is your Quirk?” 

The golden question. Considering how Quirk-dependent this world was, Tsuna was surprised this wasn’t the first question being asked. He was beginning to understand that although it was a common question, it had the same connotation as asking a lady her age. It can be taken wrongly depending on who it was. But here, in the classroom, it was valid. 

Tsuna took in a deep breath in, closing the folder for roll call as the curt but practised smile slipped on his face. “I am Quirkless.”

The bell rang just in time. He never realised how loud it sounded when it was compared to the deafening silence of a room full of rowdy teenagers. 

“Alright, period one is starting. If you guys want to come and talk to me, or ask me more questions, feel free to swing by after school. My office is always open for any questions, personal or school-related, or just idle chatter about your hobbies.”

With that, Tsuna turned around to erase his name as he began to write down the topics he wanted to cover for the class, taking advantage of the blissful silence while it lasted. 

* * *

**IZUKU**

A Quirkless teacher for Class 1-A. The rumours started spreading like wildfire. Izuku couldn’t shake off the initial shock for the rest of Sawada’s class. He had so many questions when the revelation came, and even when everyone else had calmed down, he still focused on the single fact that the teacher guiding their class of Hero-to-bes was Quirkless. The allusion of a Quirkless Hero Course teacher was unimaginable. 

‘Not a Quirkless Pro-Hero though,’ he had to remind himself as Izuku fiddled with his notebook in front of the Hero Course faculty office. He really wanted to ask him questions, but he was worried he would come off as too annoying. The advice Sawada had given him during the testing was really helpful. Izuku knew he would’ve done something stupid if he wasn’t stopped. All-Might had reassured him that he will learn, but the boy didn’t have the same confidence instilled in himself. 

However, before he could make up his mind, it seemed like the decision was made for him as his teacher walked out with his bag swung over his shoulder. 

“Thank you, I will see you tomorrow, Yamada-sensei,” Sawada had said just before noticing Izuku by the door. “Oh! Hi, Midoriya-kun. Can I help you with anything?”

The man seemed so kind and gentle, the complete opposite of how Aizawa was. Or his old homeroom teacher, if Izuku were to reflect on the past teachers he had. Unfortunately, he had terrible with luck ever since kindergarten. The boy was sure his nervousness was easy to pick up, but he was too worried to be picked apart because of the same nervousness energy to actually speak. 

The silence seemed to drag on for a beat too long before Izuku finally opened his mouth, “I…”

“Would you like to come in? I am in no rush to get home.” With a warm smile, Sawada had slid the door to the office open, inviting Midoriya in. 

“Yes!” 

While the teacher was settling down, Izuku quickly followed the man to his desk, dragging a chair over so the man didn’t have to wait for him to get comfortable.

“What brings you here today?” Sawada seemed to have picked up on the exercise book in Izuku’s hand. “Is it school-related?” 

“No, no!” Every answer came out in nervous stutters which were so incredibly embarrassing. Izuku released his tight grip on the book as he placed it down on the table so the other could see the cover. “It’s just my notes for, um…” He trailed off, always too embarrassed to actually introduce his notes to people because of the adverse reaction it usually got. 

Izuku was so used to everyone in his life telling him he could never be a Hero. Even All-Might initially was the same. A Quirkless person could never become a Hero. That was the facts. So why was Sawada Tsunayoshi, a Quirkless individual educating a group of students in a course designed to produce future Heroes? The contradiction had sparked some uncomfortable and hard-to-label emotions within him. If he dared to try and identify them, Izuku would’ve said it was close to envy. But that was such an ugly emotion for his teacher, someone he should respect. 

“Hero Analysis for the Future,” the boy heard the teacher read off the front of the crumpled book and immediately slapped his hand over it, absolutely embarrassed to have it said out loud. 

“Yeah, um, well, this is just my notes about Heroes and Quirks. I had them for a long time! Well, yeah, I guess they are just something I have done since I was a kid. I really like Heroes and stuff,” he stumbled with his words. The memories of the previous mockeries returned as Izuku lowered his head, fully ready to be criticised for having something so creepy and unnecessary. 

“You know, a mentor of mine had always reminded me that knowledge is power. It’s a cliché phrase coming from a teacher, but I think it’s more than just school-based learning. Knowledge is so underrated when there are so many cool and flashy Quirks to think about. But the more you know about your allies and enemies, the more options you have. The more options you have, the higher your chances of surviving are,” Sawada said as Izuku began to lift his head, eyes widening as he nodded his head a little to acknowledge what the teacher said. 

“Sorry, I am boring you with this lecture, aren’t I? I am sure you didn’t come here to hear a teacher talking about the importance of learning.” There was this boyish clumsiness that seemed to come from Sawada’s words which Izuku had rarely seen from teachers. Most of the ones he knew were always so confident and prideful. 

“No, it’s not boring. Really! I thought you would think it’s weird, most people think it’s weird that I am so obsessed with Heroes and they think it’s childish.” There Izuku went with his negativity, which he hated but he couldn’t stop. 

For a moment, there was silence, and all the boy could think was how he had messed up again but all of the sudden he had heard some rustling before another book was placed within Izuku’s view. 

“I will let you on a secret. I was too embarrassed to show this to the other teachers, but I actually have a notebook of my own about you guys. You can’t flip through it for privacy reasons, but I just wanted you to know that you are not the only one. Plus, I don’t think having something you are passionate about is something to feel embarrassed about. It just makes you human,” he said on a sigh. “I hope someday you will truly understand that. But until then, if you ever feel like you have this crushing urge to talk someone’s ears off about Heroes and Quirks, I would love to hear about it. I am a little ashamed to admit that despite being in a Hero-focused school, my knowledge is a little lacking. It would great if you could help me out.”

The meeting honestly had taken a turn for the stranger as Izuku nodded his head so fast, he felt the strain on his neck, but a small and genuine smile appeared on his lips shakily. 

“I would love to!” He stuffed the book carefully back into his bag. “Can I really come again to talk to you about it?” 

Izuku really thought the laughter Sawada emitted when he agreed would’ve made his skin crawl, however, the boy could tell, for once, the laughter wasn’t out of mockery. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello to everyone who's reading this,  
> I had a really lovely time reading the comments and seeing the love flood in. I decided that with my schedule outside of writing this fic that I will go by a weekly posting schedule, usually aiming to get it out by the end of the week. I hope you all have a fantastic week ahead. Please leave some comments on your way out if you have any ideas or scenarios you want to see. I enjoy seeing them very much. 
> 
> Much love.


	4. Chapter 3

**TSUNA**

It was as if his Hyper Intuition needed finetuning, Tsuna could not comprehend why it was acting up as bad as it had been. He had initially blamed it on the alien world he was now forced to make peace with. However, even that theory made his stomach churn. The man had never been the one to ignore that gut feeling, as most people would call it. 

Tsuna ran a hand through his unruly hair as he stepped off the bus as a last-ditch attempt to tame his mane. It was, of course, a futile attempt considering a lifetime worth of failed tries with new hairstyles. He had caved to his gravity-defying hair and spent more time focused on making himself look less boyish by changing the way he dressed. 

Though today’s outfit was clearly a mistake. 

With his grey blazer, white button-up and black jeans, it seemed like a horde of reporters has crowded the entrance of U.A. had mistaken him for a fellow student as Tsuna was promptly circled. The attention was hardly flattering as the man quickly became nervously skittish, fumbling with the bag as he placed it in front of his face. He had no idea what triggered the onslaught of media attention. Still, anonymity had always been his preference when it came to media attention. 

“Excuse me! We heard All-Might is going to be a teacher! What is it like working with the number one Hero! Can you tell us a little about how All-Might is like in private?”

“Is All-Might retiring?”

“Is All-Might as competent of a teacher as he is a Hero?”

Tsuna’s mind was spinning, but thankfully, he had done enough homework to at least know who All-Might was. Especially since such a big shot name was coming to their school to teach despite being at the peak of his career. Though, on a side note, as far as Tsuna could tell, this man’s career seemed to have accelerated exponentially compared to a lot of the other heroes. It was about as suspicious as Tsuna’s employment at such an elite institution. 

“Sorry, we are currently not giving any…” He was promptly cut off by some more stupid questions from the reporters. The man was so close to snapping until he heard a monotonous voice from some distance ahead as he looked up. 

“This is still a school, please keep your prying gossips elsewhere. Stop disturbing the students and leave. All-Might is currently off-campus.” Short and simple, yet even Tsuna couldn’t deny the aura of disdain Aizawa left. Admittedly, if there were one staff member he particularly liked, it was Aizawa. Something about his impudent attitude and lack of care for his overall appearance seemed genuinely honest in a world that was built upon carefully crafted personas. Aizawa felt honest, and his approach to his students felt genuine. At least from an initial analysis considering Tsuna’s lack of proper interaction with his colleague. 

“Sawada-sensei, do you intend on standing there like a deer in headlight for the rest of the day?” 

Tsuna lowered the bag he had been holding over his face as he bowed at the media mass before following Aizawa inside just as one of the newspersons took one step too far. Almost immediately, the infamous ‘U.A. Barrier’ was activated. 

Though, Tsuna wouldn’t particularly commend the school for doing the bare minimum to ensure their students’ safety. 

“Thank you for helping me out there,” he immediately offered his gratitude to the man. Tsuna had definitely tried to engage in conversations with Aizawa before this; however, none of the attempts was particularly successful. He was a far stoic version of Hibari but without the decade of trust Tsuna had carefully and slowly built, which meant it was incredibly hard trying to have the man talk about anything but work. 

“You should have been sterner. U.A. doesn’t tolerate those pests. There’s no point being soft with them.” 

“Of course, I will remember that for next time.”

Then there was the familiar silence that seemed to be a constant when they were alone. Thankfully, those awkward times were few and far between; or else Tsuna might just make a bigger fool of himself to compensate for their uncomfortable dynamic. 

“What do you think about Bakugou Katsuki and Midoriya Izuku?” Aizawa’s initiative was not something Tsuna had expected, but he was glad for the opportunity to talk. 

“From what I remember, they went to the same middle school and is in the same neighbourhood as each other. However, they don’t appear to be all that close in class. Plus, their behaviour in the Hero class suggests they are not on friendly terms, but they do know each other fairly well.” There were so much more he wanted to say, but Tsuna refrained himself from making assumptions and merely stated the facts. 

Aizawa expelled a sigh as he clicked his tongue. “That’s not my question. I want to hear your thoughts.”

Tsuna wondered briefly if Aizawa was trying to compare their assumptions, or simply analyse his ability as a teacher. Neither of which was unreasonable. The man took his chance to spill some honesty even if his own life here was a lie. 

“I think in a way, they are quite a toxic match. Midoriya gives off an impression of someone who is desperately in need of validation and struggles to have a healthy way of achieving his need. My guess it has something to do with his inability to control his Quirk, as well as his relationship with Bakugou, going off of that trial battle.” Aizawa’s expression gave away very little of what he thought, which only left the brunet wondering if he was on the right track or not. 

Midoriya was hardly the only one who was continually seeking someone else’s validation. Tsuna was a chronic approval-seeker himself. 

“As for Bakugou, I think it’s clear to anyone that he’s very talented and is filled with great potential. I am sure he had many people tell him that growing up. He can’t seem to overcome this ego of his just yet. However, I have yet to see the ego affecting him all that negatively, except socially, since he is also incredibly intelligent. In saying all that, yesterday during class, I can tell he’s not coping well with his loss. That’s the gist of those two, I suppose. What’s your opinion?”

Tsuna had turned his gaze to Aizawa, wondering what his thoughts were. It would be nice to work with someone who was on the same page as him. 

“They are both brats unfit to be Heroes right now.” 

Tsuna couldn’t help the laughter, especially when he noticed the slight smirk hanging off the man’s lips. No matter how straightforward and crude the words were, Tsuna couldn’t deny it summed them up perfectly from the perspective of a teacher. Both of the boys needed a lot of coaching to become the Heroes this society needed in the future. 

* * *

There was a lot of housekeeping to get through, Tsuna was still surprised at how little effort Aizawa put in as he stood to the side while the class decided on the Class President and the Vice President. Luckily, this was a group of proactive teenagers who sorted it out quickly under the threatening presence of Aizawa. He wrote down the representatives before letting Present Mic take his English class. 

Tsuna was acutely aware of the persistent glare on him since yesterday that came from the farthest corner of the room. It seemed like he was already much disliked by a student of his. Tsuna wondered if Bakugou had an issue with him as a person, or him as a teacher. Either way, he simply smiled in his direction before exiting the room. 

Being disliked was the last thing to concern him.

It had occurred to him late last night that in a world full of Quirks, someone has to have a useful Quirk that could assist him. Even if no one believed in parallel universes just yet. Tsuna will just have to be the ‘lunatic’ to convince them of the existence of alternative timelines. 

If the public records of existing Heroes weren’t helpful, then he needed to look elsewhere. U.A. had always boasted of being a school full of the future’s brightest leaders in their field. Maybe a current student would be the answer. 

With that newfound determination, he made his way to the office after attending a long meeting with other Social Studies teachers, but before Tsuna could enter, he slammed into someone as he stumbled backwards. 

“I’m sorry, young man!” The booming voice was unfamiliar, which led the brunet to look up.

Tall, blonde, far-too-cheery with bulging muscles filling that yellow slack far too well. All-Might. 

Tsuna immediately pushed himself up as he bowed his head, “no need, I should be the one apologising. I was too far in my own head.”

“Ah! You are the other homeroom teacher, Sawada Tsunayoshi. It is a pleasure to meet you!” All-Might had said with so much grandeur in his tone that Tsuna would’ve thought he was actually someone important in this world. 

“Yes, that is me. It is a pleasure to meet you too, All-Might. I look forward to working with you.” 

Tsuna was polite. However, he wanted little to do with the number one Hero right now. He could only access student information when he was at school, and Tsuna knew every digital action was tracked by the school, so logistically, it would seem less suspicious if he was searching through student information during school hours as opposed to after school. 

“As do I, Sawada-sensei. If you don’t mind, would you like to join me for tea? I would love to get to know the students a little more from you.” An offer Tsuna was sure he made to Aizawa as well, but it was clear he had been rejected knowing what he knew about Aizawa. 

“Of course, I would love to.”

As per usual, Tsuna took a detour due to the immense pressure of not wanting to disappoint another. If this was indeed a professional conversation, then it shouldn’t take more than one cup of tea to finish their chat. 

If only it was that simple. 

Tsuna hadn’t been all that subtle as he checked the clock hanging behind All-Might as the man went on about his first teaching experience. The smile, the outer appearance, the tone; everything about this man reminded of Tsuna of what he so disliked about this world that has warped the meaning of the word ‘hero’. 

All-Might had a lot of merits from what Tsuna had researched about him, and he was very well-liked by the public, especially in contrast of the current number two Hero who was only a spot after him. 

But Tsuna couldn’t help but read beyond the façade since that had always been his job. As the Mafia don, Tsuna had seen countless people who pretend to be someone else because of the benefits they could reap. Though, in All-Might’s case, he seemed to be doing it for more selfless reasons. In a way, it was as if All-Might was consumed by the image he had created. That was a feeling Tsuna could relate to. He too had to put up a front as the Vongola Decimo which everyone feared. Unlike All-Might though, Tsuna was allowed to be himself when he was around his loved ones. 

Did All-Might had that privilege? 

“I must commend you for your first class, All-Might. It sounds like to me that you are still adjusting to the role, as am I. I can’t help but think despite our differences, we might have a lot of the same learning journey to go through with our new jobs.” Tsuna offered a brief chuckle as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I wish I could offer more advice.”

“No, no, just the thought of having someone as inexperienced as I am is reassurance enough, Sawada-sensei. I am honoured to be working alongside you,” the Hero had answered with a cheery grin before the bell rang, signalling for the lunch break.

“I am afraid I have taken up far too long of your time, Sawada-sensei,” All-Might immediately said as he dipped his head low briefly before leaning forward to extend a hand.

Tsuna shook the blonde’s hand, but it was right at that moment his Hyper Intuition went off. He released the hand and stood up, eyes darting around. Something was off. This wasn’t just the usual discomfort. This was a warning bell. There was this perpetuating feeling of danger that bubbled up as he clenched his fists. Orange briefly shone over his usual brown orbs as felt his adrenaline building up to fight the incoming threat. 

“Sawada-sensei, are you okay?” It seemed like All-Might had picked up his change of aura as the man stared at him with confusion and unease. 

Yet, just as he was about to come up with a pretty lie, the school alarm went off and immediately Tsuna reacted as he headed to the door. He had heard All-Might rustling as the man stood up to follow him, but he turned around as he stood in the doorway. 

“I think it may be best if you stay here. If this was a fluke, it might do more harm than good for you to be there.” It was disgusting how at home Tsuna felt to finally have his Hyper Intuition to be right on the dollar. The years of resistance had long been mellowed out by all of the disheartening betrayals, which he had survived because of his Hyper Intuition. 

“What if it is an invasion? I should be there.”

“All-Might, there are other capable Heroes here other than you. Right now, news crews are surrounding the place, if any of them caught a sight, it would cause more uproar. Please stay here until we have more information. Thank you.” He left little room for argument as he stepped out, heading to the gate. 

Tsuna could already see from a distance that the news crew who crowded him at the gate this morning had successfully gotten in due to the commotion, but he didn’t believe it for a second that they were capable of passing the barrier on their own. It was too easy of an answer. 

Yet, try as he might, Tsuna couldn’t find anyone unusual from amidst the crowd of reporters. He wanted to go off and search the grounds but with all of the teachers now present to push the group out of U.A., it would be far too suspicious for someone Quirkless like him to wander off. So, he stayed. 

Tsuna could only hope the unsettled Intuition was just an unfortunate side effect of staying in a foreign universe for too long. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have loved reading all of your comments! This chapter provided a little more exposition and maybe some answers to the questions that have been popping up. Hope you guys have a lovely week, I will see y'all next time.


	5. Chapter 4

**TSUNA**

“Good luck with the Rescue class later, Aizawa-sensei,” Tsuna smiled at the man as the students headed off from homeroom to change into their sports uniform. 

Aizawa nodded his head before hearing his phone ping. He glanced down briefly only to click his tongue, seemingly in annoyance. “Typical.” He turned his head over to Tsuna, “I guess I do need the luck. All-Might is not accompanying us due to his early morning patrol. It will just be more work for me.”

“I can step in if you would like? I have no other classes right now.” Most of the newer teachers were on a probation program. It was partially why he was teaming up with Aizawa. They were usually under supervision and surveillance since there had been no short of new hires trying to exploit the students for profit. From what Tsuna understood, it will last for half a year before he will be given more classes and responsibilities. 

“No, it’s okay. You are Quirkless, so these kinds of classes wouldn’t really be within your expertise.” The Hero yawned openly as he crouched down to pack up his sleeping bag. “No one is going to pay you overtime for picking up All-Might’s shift.”

Tsuna snorted at that before bowing his head a little, “I suppose you have a point. Well, let me know if you need anything else.” With that, he headed out. He had originally heard about this class at the beginning of the week and was positively intrigued. Tsuna would’ve asked for an invitation earlier if it hadn’t slipped his mind due to the little incident yesterday. 

Clearly, something was happening. 

The lack of clarity over his own anxiety was perplexing. What was more unfortunate was the fact Nezu seemed to have confirmed Tsuna’s own suspicion that someone had snuck in. Whoever managed to evade U.A.’s detection must be quite strong in comparison. 

U.A. was no short of Pro-Heroes who all have impressive abilities, in particular, Hound Dog had a nose that everyone feared. He should have had no problem tracking down the intruder. 

If Hound Dog’s nose was as impeccable as the records suggested, it meant that they were up against someone who had no scent or left no trace. Alternatively, they were up against someone on the inside. They were the two scenarios in which they would go undetected, and Tsuna would much prefer the former. Picking out a traitor would be detrimental to both U.A.’s morale and reputation. Tsuna knew intimately what happens when people start doubting the ones they know. 

“I guess I have to do my part too,” he murmured before reaching into his inner pocket as he took out the small pouch. Tsuna had been toying with the Box Weapons and Dying Will Flame since he first got here. From what he could tell, it hadn’t affected his abilities. Still, the man refrained from testing it more than merely opening each box and inspecting them. 

Once Tsuna had made his way into the privacy of the bathroom, he slid the ring on without the rest of the gear just so he could activate the Cloud Box. ‘Boa di Nuvola’, he had borrowed it from Gokudera’s collection. According to his right-hand man, it was great at tracking and restraining the target. It didn’t change the fact Tsuna was face to face with a snake that was thankfully not as big as it could become. Traditionally, it would be used to track users of Flames, but Gokudera had mentioned it was more exhaustion of energy and Flame users require a higher usage of energy. 

“Report back if you found anyone suspicious within the school,” Tsuna instructed before letting the snake go. 

* * *

A few hours passed with little news from the Box Animal. Tsuna had realised he hadn’t been entirely clear in the instruction since the return order was based purely on the fact there was, in fact, a suspicious individual. He had kept out of the areas with heavy surveillance, but he needed to head back to the office eventually. 

That was until he sensed an explosion of Flame towards the direction of U.S.J. Cloud Flames. It was the signal. 

Immediately, Tsuna jumped up and activated the Mist Flame Weapon Box. He really should thank Gokudera’s paranoia and Reborn’s discipline for equipping him with Box Weapons every day. 

With the newly deployed group of Needletails, the man had no problem simply running towards the target. It would’ve been faster if he could fly, but that would’ve drawn too much attention. Quirkless Sawada Tsunayoshi should not be flying in plain sight. 

As he got closer, Tsuna began to notice the destination. Unexpected Stimulation Joint. It was where his class was supposed to have their Rescue class today. That prompted him to hurry as he collected the Boa when he passed the Box Weapon before going around the building. There was no doubt the front door was likely to be captured. 

At this moment, Tsuna knew he needed to make the difficult decision of not directly interfering. As much as he wanted to go in and help, the man knew it was far more efficient if he evaluated the situation first before retrieving help.

Unlike his team, Tsuna’s Flame was far more effective against other Flame users. In terms of manpower, the Mafia don was sure he could handle a few dozen people through hand-to-hand combats and the raw power of the ‘Hard’ Sky Flame, but the enemy didn’t seem to be filled just brawns alone.

A group of vengeance-filled goons couldn’t have infiltrated U.A. this easily. 

There was strength in number, so instead of alarming the opposition by going in prematurely, Tsuna circled U.S.J. in search of a back door. 

Of course, the appearance of guards was well-expected. Luckily, the Needletails were pretty good at what they do. Using the illusions created by the Box Animal, Tsuna walked up calmly to the two men as he punched the first man square in the chin which successfully knocked him out. The other one was a little noisier, so Tsuna swept his feet, so he could step around and wrap his arm around the other’s neck just long enough for the other to be conscious. 

He decided to rerelease the Boa just to restrain the pair. It was better than the ropes. 

As Tsuna stepped into U.S.J., he began to understand the capabilities of this group. He barely caught the sight of his students whisked away by an ominous black force. The ones left behind were with the two Pro-Heroes would’ve been reassuring if not for how terribly outnumbered they were. 

Aizawa was up there by himself going against two dozen Villains; however, they were not the problem here. Tsuna’s eyes were drawn to the scrawny figure in the middle with the unkempt blue hair. He looked so outrageously like a comic-book villain; it was hard not to imagine he was the boss of this whole operation. 

With most of the students gone, Tsuna decided to get the Needletails to fly over to where the remaining students were, wanting to shield their presence from the rest of the Villains. 

Taking control of other Flames’ Weapon Box was draining, especially when he was juggling between two different Box Animals at once. He ultimately decided to bring back the Boa as he slipped on his gloves.

However, the delicate balance with Aizawa was immediately destroyed when the Pro-Hero decided to attack the guy in the middle, but it backfired. At the same time, there was a crowd of gasps coming from the remaining students as he saw the aftermath of Thirteen being torn apart. 

What on earth happened? 

In a split second, Tsuna activated his Hyper Dying Will form as his feet stepped towards the students. However, he had to force himself to stop when Iida began to move. They had a plan. 

The man was acutely aware that he had no subtle way of directly interrupting with the fight without being seen. However, Tsuna took advantage of everyone’s focus on their respective enemy as he shot his flames upwards to destroy the roof, to take down a few Villains who were running towards Aizawa. He trusted the teacher would be able to turn the situation around…

Really, the man had underestimated this world. The head Villain’s Quirk immediately caused Aizawa’s skin to crack up. 

Tsuna had never humoured the idea of such a Quirk. Still, seeing it in action, he realised this world was full of people who had catastrophically horrifying abilities that no one had ever seen before. 

Consequences were damned, the man raised his right hand, using the opposite hand to balance, he used a weaker version of X-Burner to knock the Villain off his feet so he could release Aizawa. Two sets of eyes shot towards his direction, but thanks to the thick greenery, Tsuna was hidden out of view. 

Furthermore, it seemed like their worst problem had only just arrived as Tsuna’s eyes picked up a large monster that had appeared stalked up behind Aizawa.

Oh, fuck. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A slightly shorter update today since I'm feeling under the weather. Fingers crossed I can get next week's chapter out on time. 
> 
> I love reading all of your comments! Keep them coming and thank you for the continuous support.


	6. Chapter 5

**TSUNA  
  
**

Normally, Tsuna didn’t like to make snap judgements, but whatever that _thing_ was, he knew Aizawa was in no shape to take care of it. The man was already on the verge of collapsing from a mix of exhaustion, pain and stress. 

‘I should jump out now,’ Tsuna thought to himself as he readied the gloves, knowing the quickest way to take down an opponent bigger than himself was the element of surprise. A long-drawn-out battle involving stamina and endurance would be a bad fit for him when it came to a monster like that. 

However, from where the door was a crash as he saw the impact Shoji dropped heavily against the cement wall, causing a dent. 

It was far too naïve for him to think that a group of kids wouldn’t get hurt trying to take care of a Villain of that stature. Tsuna raised his hand towards the enemy. It was hard to determine what shooting a beam of flame at him would do, but everything had a weakness. What was theirs? Luckily, Uraraka answered the question for him as she slapped something along the Villain’s neck, sending him flying. 

There was something physical there. 

Tsuna needed to limit the size of the flame shooting out since the students were still close by. It was times like this that he was actually grateful for Giannini’s shenanigans. Using the technology and theory behind the Oath Flame, the Vongola technicians managed to figure out a way to recreate the same X-Burner used with the Oath Flame. Though there was no longer the same stability, the Earth Flame provided as he supported his arm, shooting out the Hard Flame with force pushing him back into the tree. 

But the job was done. The man could think about his potential concussion later as he rubbed the back of his head. Prying the shrubs in front of him to get a better view of his colleague, Tsuna was shocked to find him slammed to the ground mercilessly. 

Even if Aizawa wasn’t the ‘power’ type, he was still experienced and skilled enough to take down a few dozen Villains earlier. So, for him to fall down like this, injuries aside, Tsuna didn’t like his chances. Not that it was going to stop him, but he couldn’t afford to senselessly jump out right now. Unlike when he was younger, Tsuna wasn’t scared; this wasn’t from a place of fear. It was the reluctance of knowing that his own strength wasn’t enough in this situation and Iida had only just left to call for back-up. If he couldn’t stick it out to the end until the Pro-Heroes showed up, it would all be over.

Plus, it would seem that mist guy had picked himself up and alerted the young Villain at the Central Plaza. 

There was no element of surprise if the Villains were wary of a third party amid this fight. Tsuna knew if he jumped out now, he would surely get smashed into pieces even if he reinforced his arms with Flames. 

‘But Aizawa-sensei is going to die.’ The Mafia don tried so hard to push that thought out of his head when all of a sudden, he came face to face with mist Villain. Tsuna’s eyes widened before immediately using his Flames to push himself back as one of the tendrils came to him. 

How did he get here so fast? Tsuna would have noticed if he run up to him. 

‘Think.’ 

Tsuna ducked his head when the Villain tried to grab him again, but then, he disappeared from his eyes. _Behind you_. His Hyper Intuition screamed as Tsuna spun around, once again using his hands to propel himself backwards as he dodged the attack. 

It was teleportation. 

With the knowledge in mind, Tsuna thought back to how Uraraka managed to use her Quirk by touching the area around his neck. Sure enough, as he squinted, there was a hint of a metal plate visible through all of the mist. It was the only part of this Villain that was tangible. The smartest idea was to damage that part and hope it sent a shock to the rest of his body. He didn’t want to risk the possibility of his limbs getting cut off if he didn’t retract his punches back fast enough. 

Pressing his wrists together, the man shot himself up in the air just as the Villain charged towards him. Tsuna used the momentum to flip himself just as he landed with his back to the man, but he used his left hand to fire Soft Flame while coating his right with Hard Flame so he could slam his fist against the metal plate before his opponent could react. 

The shock gave Tsuna a chance to load up his X-Burner so he could take this man down immediately. Nothing should be left to chance. 

“Aizawa-sensei…” 

Tsuna’s attention was immediately turned to the new students who had appeared not far from him. He immediately turned his stance to face the blue-haired Villain at the Central Plaza who had, in turn, looked in their direction. It would seem their gaze had crossed for a mere second and Tsuna knew he was spotted by the Villain. 

‘Consequence be damned,’ he thought before firing the shot as he grunted, immediately feeling the shock of the Hard Flame overwhelming the balance of Soft Flame, which had him thrown back into the cement wall. Whether or not if it helped, Tsuna brought his left hand forward to whistle for the Needletails to come back, shielding him. They knew someone was here, but as long as they didn’t realise it was him, that was enough. 

His head was spinning as he rested up against the wall. The Villain with the teleportation Quirk was nowhere to be seen, not to mention, Midoriya and Asui seemed to have escaped the main Villain’s reach. 

Aizawa was down, so was Thirteen. Tsuna needed to stay until back-up arrives, but due to his own negligence and hesitance, he felt the accumulation of the injuries and overuse of Flame keeping him on the ground despite his best efforts to push up and fight. He was supposed to protect those kids. 

Ever since Tsuna had stepped into this world, he knew that these kids shouldn’t have to fight for their survival at this age, but wasn’t that what he was doing this whole time? He weighed their usefulness and his own strength equally. He kept thinking logically based on the strength he knew the kids were capable of, but he neglected his own belief that _children_ shouldn’t be in combat for their lives in the first place. 

There was no logic here. 

Tsuna should’ve fought for them from the beginning. Like Aizawa has. 

There was no time for remorse. Tsuna ground his teeth together as he stood up, ready to do the right thing, not the sensible thing. 

It was also then all of their attention was turned to the loud crash at the door. Apparently, Iida did it. All-Might ran in with all of the poise an experienced Pro-Hero should have. Tsuna didn’t doubt for a second that he was at the top of his industry. Relief washed over him as he turned around, heading to the exit he came in from. 

Now, a Hero was someone he could leave to fight. More were soon to follow. There was no more reason for Tsuna to be here. Summoning the Needletails to follow him, the man started to make his return back to the main campus. 

There was no hurry, as he opened up the Sun Box with his Flame, letting the Sun Flame covered spider crawl onto him so he could start the healing process. All the meanwhile, Tsuna fixed up his clothes. He placed some twigs where rips in his clothes were, as well as leaves in his hair. Whether or not these were convincing was irrelevant since none of the teachers should be looking in his direction when the students were in danger. 

“Hurry up!” There was a distant yell from Present Mic before more footsteps were heard. Tsuna could already tell that it was the rest of the Pro-Heroes. The timing couldn’t be more immaculate. 

“Whose smart idea was to make U.S.J. so isolated from the rest of the school?” Midnight’s voice sounded ragged as she followed Present Mic. 

Tsuna knew this was his best chance to get out of this without any questioning whatsoever so after putting all of the Box Weapons away, he purposely fell into the shrub that was underneath a tree, stumbling out with a groan as he nearly crashed into Cementoss if not for the other Hero’s hands holding him in place. 

“Sawada-sensei!” Iida called out, looking at the homeroom teacher with shock. 

“Sorry! I heard the commotion and fell out the tree,” he groaned as he rolled his shoulders back, pretending to be sore from his ‘fall’. “Where’s everyone going?”

“There’s no time to explain, but the 1-A kids are in danger, we have to go!” Present Mic yelled as he waved the team who started running again. 

Vlad King who was at the end of the line with Nezu on his shoulder stopped by Tsuna, eyeing his injuries, “Sawada-sensei, you should head back. You are Quirkless, are you not? There are a lot of Villains at U.S.J. right now. It is not safe.”

“I agree, Sawada-sensei,” Nezu chimed in with the familiar smile that seemed eerie on his best days, but in the state of disaster, it was even worse. “You are not responsible to fend off any Villains, in fact, it is stated explicitly in your contract to stay away from physical altercations if they do occur since you could be hurt.”

Tsuna had to resist the urge to yell at the principal as he shook his head, dusting the leaves from his hair, “No! They are my students; I have to see what’s happening.”

There was hesitance in Vlad King’s eyes, but he simply nodded his head before running off to catch up with the other Heroes. “Then you have to catch up on your own, we don’t have time to take care of you on top of the students.”

‘It’s not as if I wanted you guys to focus on me,’ the Mafia don thought as he rolled his eyes, beginning his jog. Being as worn out as he was, everything worked out since he was significantly slower than the other Pro-Heroes, which only added to his image of being a ‘hopeless’ and ‘defenceless’ Quirkless teacher. Tsuna wondered if All-Might was doing okay. 

Most of the Villains were defeated beside the two with more distinct Quirks and of course, the monster. 

Tsuna was keeping at his own pace, practically eating the trail of dust the other Pro-Heroes left when he heard the shatter of glass before seeing something fly out of U.S.J., halting in his steps. It was hard to tell what it was, but as the thing was slowly falling as opposed to flying, Tsuna realised that it was the monster. Except, more so than fleeing, it looked like it was flung out of the building.

All-Might really was a monster in his own rights, managing to defeat a creature like that. 

* * *

By the time Tsuna had arrived at U.S.J. again, it would seem the Heroes had the situation under control. The students were in the process of being escorted out of U.S.J. so the Pro-Heroes can start putting the Villains who were left behind in custody. 

“Sawada-sensei, you made it!” Iida’s voice reached Tsuna first as the boy looked over with the familiar furrowed brows. 

“Yes, I did. I am afraid I am slower than you.” The teacher sucked in a deep breath before glancing over the students. To his surprise, most of them were injury-free or had very minor bruises, except for Midoriya who must’ve gotten into a scuffle when he was facing off the main Villain. “I’m so glad to see you are all okay! I heard there was a Villain attack. Let me just check in with other teachers. Please just stay here. I will be back in a moment.”

Tsuna noticed Aizawa and Thirteen on stretchers as he headed inside, feeling a mix of guilt and respect. He decided to approach Nezu since he was the principal. The man had no idea what he expected. The instructions were the standard ‘stay away from here, make sure the students were okay’. A Quirkless guy like him wasn’t going to be here cleaning up. 

It was for the better though. Tsuna’s heart and thoughts remained with the students. After going through what they went through, there was no doubt that the bulk of them had things on their mind to discuss. 

“I will leave Aizawa-sensei and Thirteen to you guys then.” He bowed his head before heading back out. The students of 1-A were animatedly discussing what Tsuna could assume was what happened to them earlier. There were some wary faces among the group, but most of them seemed to be in good spirits. At least on the surface, they were—what a strong group of kids. 

They deserved all of the compliments thrown their way. It wasn’t enough, though. Tsuna knew what he wished more than anything when he was younger was for someone to just ask how he was after his first fight. After beating Mukuro, more so than the relief of surviving, was the fear of a world filled with people like his Mist Guardian. Over time, the feeling had become background noise. He didn’t really want that to be the case for these kids.

“Everyone, listen up,” he gathered their attention with a small smile, “Aizawa-sensei and Thirteen-sensei are not in life-threatening conditions. As for the rest of the day, we decided that it’s best for all of you to take the day off. Those who have injuries should head to Recovery Girl and get it checked out. As for the rest of you, if any of you have anything on your mind about everything that happened, I’m here till late today. Otherwise, I will reach out and see how you are doing some time along the week.” 

Tsuna could tell that a few would reach out to him considering the looks shot his way. The man escorted them onto the bus, settling down at the front as his body ached. He wasn’t healed completely, plus, the sheer exhaustion was settling in, but Tsuna knew a can of energy drink will fix everything. 

Well, not everything, but he could at least make it through the rest of the day until he crashed at home. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovelies,
> 
> Sorry for the lack of update last week. I was swamped with real-life stuff, but I am back. I tried to go for an extra-long chapter, but I think I failed. In saying all of that, there is a little more action this week. I feel like Tsuna is straying from his canon personality, though I am hoping him being older makes a good explanation. 
> 
> Thank you for reading and commenting as always! I get so excited and motivated when I see the theories you guys come up with. 
> 
> Hope you guys have a good week!


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